The Visual Alliance Media Blog

The Visual Alliance Media Blog Has a New Home!

We've Moved!

Thank you to all of the loyal followers of our blog here at VAMblog.com.  As you may have noticed, we launched our new website a few weeks ago and we've integrated a new blog into the site. 

The VAM bloggers that you've come to know and love will continue to post on the new blog.  So please stop by the new website and click on blog to find posts about social media, Facebook, Twitter, Tampa Bay Social Media, Training, Social Media Bootcamp, SEO, web development and much, much more!  Don't forget to subscribe to the new blog while you're there!

Spirit Airlines - Ignore It and They Will Go Away

And by "they" we mean customers.  You may have heard about the new level of ridiculous that Spirit Airlines has reached when they announced that starting August 1st, 2010, they will begin charging $45 for fliers bringing a carry-on intended for the overhead compartments.

Since it was just recently announced, what the true fallout will be remains unknown.  But what we find completely amazing is Spirit's choice to ignore the feedback of their customers, potential customers and the general public.  And there's been a lot of feedback.

Oh yes, they've answered some of it during interviews with ABC News, but you know what?  Their answers have included telling the public why they're justified in their decision and how it will benefit the airline.  Unfortunately the claim that this will make flying less expensive for passengers was the thickest smoke we've seen blown up the public's a@s in a long time.  Yeah, we checked a simple flight from TPA to FLL on August 7th, returning the 8th.  With 1-carry-on and 1-checked bag, taxes and airport fees on Spirit will cost us $221.04.  The same flight, same days, same bags on Southwest? $114.00 - a savings of $107.04.  "Leading low-cost airline" my a@s (have to stop saying that).

With the makings of a PR nightmare written all over it, we had to see how Spirit is using social media tools to deal with it. 

We found a Facebook fan page (unsure of whether it's official or not), that mentions nothing about the new policy.  We also found a Twitter profile dubbed as the official Spirit Airlines Twitter profile that mentions nothing about the new policy.  And that's about it.

No mention of it?  That's crazy talk!  News flash Spirit - search engines are indexing blog posts, video, social network feeds and more.  People are talking, but you're not listening.

This lesson isn't limited to Spirit though.  It applies to a lot of businesses who believe they're taking some corporate high road by banning social networking in the office, or refusing to participate.  If the customers or potential customers are providing feedback on a social network about a particular brand and they do so regularly, then the brand needs to be a part of the conversation too.

All this talk about wasted time and ROI or lack thereof boils down to a lack of understanding of how to effectively leverage new technologies.  Call us crazy, but if our customers or potential customers are willing to provide us with a 'roadmap' of the exact products and services that they are willing to pay for or not pay for, in a forum that allows us to not only hear them, but also to prove that we hear them because we're doing something about it...that sounds like a pretty good deal!

People are going to talk, they're going to share and they're going to act.  We can choose to be a part of the conversation or we can choose to ignore it. But remember that today's consumers are using social media.  Ignoring it won't make it go away, but it will make them go away.

Forget Last Summer, I Know Where You Live

The irony with this post is that it's April Fool's Day, but this is NOT a joke.  Yesterday, we stumbled across a site called Spokeo.  And although directories with people's contact information are nothing new, this particular directory is just a bit on the disturbing side.

Why?  Well when we tested it out by placing our names in the search box, what we found was just kind of scary.  Our addresses were there, there were photos, our home values and even credit scores all there for ANYBODY to see.

Don't believe us?  Try it for yourself, you might be a bit surprised at what you find.  Although there were some errors in the information, other parts were uncomfortably accurate.  Spokeo is an aggregation of all things you.  Drawn from your personal profiles via the web.

Now you might say, "that information is already out there and available" and we'd have to agree with you.  But at least in certain places, you can control who has access and all of those pieces are spread out in various places throughout the net...not in one place.

The good news is that you can very easily remove yourself from the directory by going here.  The process is relatively painless, but you'll need to have the url (link) of your Spokeo listing readily available to complete the process.  You also have to enter your email which probably adds you to yet another public list somewhere, but at least you'll be out of the main listing by name section of the site.

How do you feel about sites like this?  Is it infringing on your privacy?  Take the time to share this with anyone you know that may care about how easily their information can be found in one, very convenient place.

Top 5 Reasons I Hate Chat Roulette

 

If you haven’t heard of Chat Roulette, then you will. It’s the new IT among chat websites and it’s taking the internet by storm. I however am not a fan and here’s why.

 

5. Too short. The site lets you skip partners before you’ve barely had time to see the person or at least say hi. I think there should be a 10 second delay, so you have to at least see who you’re talking to before you skip.

 

4. Sound. Chat Roulette includes the ability to listen to what people are saying in addition to typing. Now I’m all up for verbal communication, but it resets the sound option every time you change a partner. With so many partners in such a short amount of time, this process is very, very, very annoying. I’m talking VH1 celeb reality TV annoying.  

 

3. Ego punch. I don’t know if it was the site or just me, but from my experience, I had about 10,000 skips in an hour. Damn people, don’t I look fun?

 

2. Too Random. I know the point is to keep it totally random, but can’t they give us the option to at least narrow down partners to a certain demo or geographic area? I feel creepy talking to 13 year olds online. Although, in the time I “played” Chat Roulette I did talk to people in Hawaii, Germany, China and Turkey.  Pretty neat.  

 

1. Nasty Nudity. In a single session of Chat Roulette I saw every part of the male and female anatomy. Now I’m all up for showing some love on the internet, but let’s leave it to the hotties. I really don’t want to see my grandpa rubbing the weasel or grandma playing bounce the melons.

 

If you don’t believe me, just Google Chat Roulette. I guarantee you’ll have the same rants as me within 30 minutes of “playing” it.

5 Easy Ways to Get the Most Out of Your LinkedIn Profile

 

SO you have this LinkedIn profile. You got it a year or two ago just to have one, but you really haven’t done much with it.

 

Well you should.

 

According to a recent study, almost 90% of employers used online search tools like LinkedIn to find new prospects. As we've said before, social networking has becoming more than just a way to connect with old friends and share hobbies. Among other things, it is morphing into a virtual job fair that can land you that corner office you’ve always wanted.

 

To better prepare you for this new world of job networking, here are 5 easy ways to get the most out of your LikedIn profile.

 

1. Add a picture. I’m not talking that one with you and Stacy at the club last night. A nice professional picture that shows just how professionally professional you are. Just a little P.S., it doesn’t hurt to Photoshop out those crow’s feet.
2. Add tons of contacts. The more contacts you have on Linkedin the more your network will grow, meaning the more chances you have of someone discovering your amazing resume. Go through the search tool and add everyone you’ve ever known or met professionally and take advantage of the “people you may know” section that pops up on the home screen. 
3. Build a resume. Like any other resume, your LinkedIn profile should showcase your talents. Don’t leave large time gaps, use lots of actions words when describing past jobs and show measurable accomplishments like “increased sales by 20% in 1 year.” Be sure to include any volunteering you do, this shows you care about more than just yourself and are an active part of your community.
4. Join professional groups. If you are a member of PRSA, then join their LinkedIn group. It’s a great way to boost your network and increase your chances of getting discovered by employers. Most professional organizations have a LinkedIn group, so if you’re not a member of one, join today!
5. Get professional recommendations. Ask previous employers, coworkers or friends you’ve done work for to write short blurbs about your work ethic, drive, talents, etc. Three highly credible recommendations are obviously better than having 3 friends get on and write something, so make them count.

Now that your LinkedIn profile is on the way to greatness, that corner office isn’t far behind. But as the great Albert Schweitzer wrote, “Success is not the key to happiness, happiness is the key to success.”